Endangered
by HorseyGal23
Summary: Bella, north America's newest GW, is also Forks' newest resident-just no one knows that. She lives a rather solitary life in her cabin in the forest.But things are bound to get interesting with a bunch of irritating vampires and werewolves around...AU E/B
1. Prologue

**Hey fellow Twilighters! I'm trying my hand at a Twilight story, cus I had this idea and it wouldn't leave me alone, and it kinda derived from the book and I couldn't figure out what to call the characters. xP Lame, I know. In this, Bella is sorta OOC, but she's still very Bella-ish, with the tripping and blushing. Just instead of liking the classics like Pride and Prejudice, or Romeo and Juliet, she likes stuff like the D&K World Atlas of Wildlife…**

**I'm not very sure if this is very clear and all, so tell me. I think I went a little overboard with my description, so bear with me. Also, do I absolutely **_**have **_**to do a disclaimer? I think it's obvious enough that I'm not S. Meyer…**

**THIS PROLOGUE HAS BEEN EDITED, SO RE-READ IT IF YOU READ IT WHEN I POSTED IT THE FIRST TIME! **

**Anyhow, here is the prologue to Endangered**

Hi, I'm Isabella – Bella – Swan. Brown hair, brown eyes, slightly tanned but still rather pale, I don't look especially out of the ordinary. In fact, I look like any average American seventeen year old. Of course, that's where everyone goes wrong. Never judge a book by its cover.

You see, I'm a GW; guardian of wildlife. I – surprise! – watch over wildlife. I make sure that they don't die of unnatural causes. I don't really have many powers, although I'm immortal, I heal quickly if injured, and I teleport. I can only teleport across the North American continent, and I can't control when it happens. It just takes me to wherever an animal that is in danger is, whenever. Good for the animals? Yes. For me? Not so much.

But don't get me wrong, I love my job. Well, the animal part of it. You see, I can talk to them as well. It's rather cool; an insight into their minds, what their lives are really like. Those stupid wildlife biologists (and the like) that taught me in college have _no idea_ what they are talking about. Seriously. It's all a load of crap.

Well, now that you know about my 'job', I might as well tell you about other aspects of my life. We'll start with my childhood.

I grew up in the sunny town of Phoenix, Arizona. My parents, Charlie and Renee, had a really rocky relationship, to say the least. And guess what? I was always in the middle of it. I eventually resorted to completely ignoring them, at about the age of twelve or thirteen, droning out their yelling with heavy metal and looking for any animal knowledge that had seemed to evade my encyclopedia-like brain. I was always an outcast in school, although I did have _one_ friend, Alice, a social, rather loud and overly excited character who used to find great pleasure in dressing me up like her own personal Barbie. She called this torture a 'makeover,' participating in it at least once a week. Her parents eventually sent her to an asylum because of her uncanny ability to predict the future, because they found it strange.

Soon after, when I was about seventeen, I got these weird dreams. Apparently, I was a 'chosen one'. I got told about my job, and got the lay-down of what was to happen. The rules were imprinted in my mind to this very day. I was to get a degree in wildlife veterinary work, with a tad of conservation biology on the side, and after that, say my final goodbyes to my family before choosing a remote town to settle and run my own wildlife rehab center in – none of the general public were to know of its existence.

So, I did just that, careful not to break any rules. I really didn't want this person or these people on my case. After the goodbyes to my oh-so-loving family, the teleporting began. My first mission was to save a number of birds on the coast of Alaska, where a terrible oil spill had occurred and left numerous water birds unable to fend for themselves. When I teleported again, I ended up in Forks, Washington, a small dreary town on the Olympic Peninsula.

Next thing I knew, I was camping out in the forest surrounding the town, hiking (and tripping, my klutziness was something I never lost) and looking for the perfect spot for my wildlife rehabilitation center. I found it about a wildlife-saving free week after I started looking. By that time, I was pretty beaten up, and tired. I set up camp, and that night, I had a dream, where it gave me a supply list and told me to get everything back to the spot in two days time.

Me, being all scared to break the rules, did as I was told, and the next day, when I woke up, _voila,_ my center was all up, with everything in place.

_The place was huge, and they had to clear quite a few trees for the main house, whoever did it. But they took care to keep them intact where possible. Good architect, I guess. _

_The single-story main building was made completely made out of wood that was of a rich, reddish shade. The door was of a matching color, with a dog door; a mat lay on the patio in front of it, reading 'Welcome'. Next to it was a plant, and if you climbed up the few stairs, you could see a key was tucked away near the roots, barely visible. I bent down to pick up the keys, and then straightened up, taking a deep breath as I shoved the key in the whole, turned it, and after hearing a 'click!' I took the door knob and twisted it. The door opened, revealing a large, homely looking area. _

_The cabin was beautiful and efficient looking, all the walls painted white. In the far left-hand corner, was a small kitchen, with a couple cabinets, a stove and oven, a fridge and a sink. The floor in the area was tiled, with a small wooden table for two resting on it. _

_The entire closer, right-hand corner was a split level, with a few steps leading down into it a few meters from where I was standing. There was a large TV against one wall on top of a console that had a VHS player, a DVD player that also played CDs, and an amplifier. The surround sound speakers were placed on either side of the couch. I later found out the TV had all necessary channels, as well as links to the surveillance cameras that were supposedly scattered around her center. There was a soft looking, off-white colored leather couch in front of it, along with a fluffy rug in the shape of an owl and a low, wooden coffee table. On the wall perpendicular to the one the TV was against, were several waist high cupboards with glass doors, filled with CDs, DVDs, and VHS tapes in alphabetical order. The organization wasn't going to last long. On top of the cabinet was a white doily as well as a photograph of my parents and me at my eighth birthday party; we all looked so happy. What a lie. _

_Past that, in the far right-hand corner, were simply three doors, nothing but a white rug on the floor in front of them. One on the same wall as half the kitchen, and two on the other wall perpendicular to it._

_The first door led to a bedroom, with a simple four poster bed, with numerous snow colored pillows and a dark green and comforter covered in moose. I had to laugh to myself. Moose? Next to it was a nightstand with a coaster and a lamp on it. On either side of the bed were loads of bookshelves. The shelves on the far side of the bed were all fiction, in alphabetical order. These people must be OCD or something. So much organization! On the side closer to where I stood, were rows and rows of informative books, from how-tos to encyclopedias and wildlife watching guides. The far wall of the room was all a window, looking out into the forest. Translucent white curtains hung on either end of the window. There were two doors on the wall opposite the bed, and to the right of where I stood, in front of the doorframe through which I had just entered. In between them were a large teakwood closet and a vanity. They were all bare – I'd have to go shopping later. _

_The door closest to me led to an extremely large bathroom. There was a door across the bathroom that led into the next room, and one to my right which presumably led to the main living area of the large cabin area. The bathroom itself was very basic; a toilet, bath, shower and a sink with a mirror above it and a glass shelf in between for toiletries. Inside the tainted glass sliding doors of the shower was a fancy shower nozzle that would take a while, and many accidents, to figure out, as well as shelves for soaps and shampoos. _

_I soon left the bathroom, walking across the bathroom and into the next room. It was a nursery and veterinary facility in one. Wow, they really thought of everything, didn't they? The room was large, and L-shaped. Along the window that I figured continued from the one in my room made for a great view, and there were numerous, sturdy puppy-pens along its length. In the corner at the end of the width of the 'L' of the room, were a number of cages in two rows, stacked on top of each other, for smaller animals. Some of them were made of glass. There was also a little fridge plugged in, and there was a door by it that I found led to my bedroom; convenient. I walked back to where I was standing before, by the door leading in from the bathroom, and looked around the rest of the room. _

_Across from me was a wall with metal sinks and countertops, as well as several fridges and cabinets. A couple IVs and air supply systems were there, with numerous mask sizes. In the center of the room were two operation tables, one for moderately larger animals, and one for smaller ones. Happy that I had finally finished exploring this part of the house, I quickly exited and took a look at what I skipped, which was almost directly opposite where I stood in front of the door that I just noticed had a sign on it that read 'clinic'. Same went for the other doors, although instead of 'clinic', they read 'bathroom' and 'private: do not enter without permission'. I giggled, these people were good._

_In the last corner was an office sort of setting. There was a plush, comfy looking black leather chair behind a table with a laptop on it, plugged in and running. Various stationary items were laid in a stack to the right of the computer. On the left of the computer sat a black phone, already plugged into the wall and useable. Not that I'd need it. It all faced out a large window which had a good view of the enclosures outside, presumably for my animals to be. A supply shed and adjacent aviary and smaller, indoor enclosures were clearly visible, right in the middle of the four, large chain-link fenced enclosures. _

_I wandered to the living room corner, and turned on Animal Planet, before walking into the kitchen to get a drink. I opened the fridge to find it empty, with the exception of an envelope. Inside was a credit card with my name on it, as well as note. The note read:_

You didn't seriously think we were gonna let you by that easy, right? You'll have to order supplies from Port Angeles, Forks, Seattle, wherever. Just keep it on the DL. Oh, and consider the credit card a welcome present. It's pre-paid, with an unlimited amount of cash.

Sincerely,

You're Boss.

_Figures_.

**I couldn't help making the house just **_**appear**_**! Lolz, you'll soon see I'm kinda off the rocker anyways…and I think it'll be something to do with the story later. Also, Edward won't really be in the story much at the beginning, just so you know. Also, Alice in this story is a little younger than the one in the book, but she's still with the Cullens when they meet. Ok, now press that button, somewhere below this, and review! And I'm not gonna demand reviews like a lot of authors, but what can I say, dad likes reading them! Ok, you caught me! I like them too… Also, I don't know the names to all the medical stuff, so bear with me; and I was wondering if anyone had ideas for a title that doesn't suck?**

**Xx**

**HG23**


	2. Cookie

**Sorry it took so long to update! I was horse riding. And happy week and something after New Year! xP and because, I really missed out on a lot of stuff in the center, ****I'VE REDONE A LOT OF THE PROLOGUE. GO BACK AND READ THAT NOW****… also, stuff like glass tanks for marine life and reptiles are missing. But I have it covered – she doesn't work a lot with marine life, and there aren't many ways a snake can die of non-natural causes. And what is up with all the favorites and alerts and hits, and **_**FOUR **_**reviews. Not that I'm complaining or anything…-cough- And guess what? Dad said he went to school with Carter Burwell, the guy who did Bella's Lullaby…that's sorta cool…: D anyhow, read away!**

**Endangered: Chapter 1**

So, it's been a while since I got the center, and I had adjusted pretty well to my hermit-like existence. I was doing well, and I'd figured out all my routines by now. I go down to Port Angeles every couple weeks to get supplies as required and kept interaction with humans to a bare minimum.

I also had numerous animals to take care of them, most of them were snare victims, and some were just injured animals I had given the benefit of the doubt when I saw them on my early morning walk, which I take after tending to the animals.

I currently had a wide selection of creatures - a rocky mountain goat, a lynx, a now adolescent golden eagle, a belted kingfisher, a pika, and a mountain beaver.

They all had stories too. The mountain goat, Tara, got shot in the thigh, and I picked her up after a mission in Alaska, while I was taking a walk to calm down. The lynx, Nina, is this old gal who's seen it all, and after an in-depth conversation on the uselessness of guys, I couldn't just leave her there, could I? She has run of the center, and is like the mom I never had. The golden eagle, Hunter, was the weaker chick who got pushed out of his nest by his older sister. He had my heart immediately - he was that cute - so I took him home to raise him. He's only been here a couple weeks, and is still covered in down. Barracuda, the belted kingfisher, I found by a small lake, trying to fish with semi-clipped wings. He got away from the humans before they did it all, because the clipper was an amateur, and doing it in the open. His wings are almost grown back now, and I have to help him learn to fly all over again. Finally, there's Teddy, a mountain beaver that got caught in a trap. I had to amputate the lower half of his left foreleg, which is unfortunate. He'll never get released, as the amputation inhibits his movement too much. He's a real comedian.

Anyways, I was currently finishing up feeding my residents. I only had Nina left, and I was already dressed for my normal morning jog, in black sweats, a light green shirt with dark green designs covering it, along with my favorite sneakers. My hair was in its usual high ponytail, my bangs hanging on either side of my face, tucked behind my ears. My iPod was tucked in my back pocket, along with my keys. I had already locked the door.

"Here, kitty kitty!" I teased Nina as I tossed her slab of beef on the ground, in the usual spot a few meters to the right of the steps leading to the porch.

"Shut up!" She replied as she emerged from brush.

"I'll think about it." I smiled at her, and her lips pulled back over her teeth in her own kind of smile.

"Don't think too hard, you might hurt yourself."

I rolled my eyes. "I'm gonna go now." I informed Nina. "Enjoy breakfast girlie!" I called over my shoulder as I jogged off, deciding to go in the opposite direction of the path I normally take.

"Oh, and Bella?"

I stopped jogging and turned to look at Nina. "Yes?"

"Be careful!"

"Aren't I always?" With that, I turned and started up again.

"I just have that feeling. I'm warning you!" She yelled after me.

"Whatever _mom_!" I called, not turning this time. I heard Nina snort as I entered the forest.

To explain that conversation, Nina had these sorts of premonitions. She can feel when something bad, unforeseen, dangerous or just plain weird is about to happen. She's usually right too. At this place in time though, I wasn't expecting anything too drastic, maybe just a mission; nothing big.

I pulled my iPod out of my pocket, unwrapping the wires for the earphones that were wound tightly wound around the iPod, and sticking the buds in my ears. I then turned the thing on, doing 'shuffle' as I didn't have any preference for what I wanted to listen to at the moment. 'All Fall Down' by OneRepublic came on.

_Step out the door,_

_And it feels like rain,_

_That's the sound, _

_That's the sound, _

_On your window pane _

Right on cue, it started raining. Luckily for me, I got my iPod water-proofed. How, I don't know, but it worked. The rest of me wasn't so lucky though, I was quickly getting soaked to the skin. Stupid brain, thinking for once I could go for a jog without a raincoat.

The song continued, and then the chorus came blasting out.

_If ever your world starts crashing down,_

_Whenever your world starts crashing down,_

_Whenever your world starts crashing down,_

_That's when you'll find me_

I had no idea how true those lyrics were at the time. I just kept jogging, turning to the right. I intended to make a loop back to the center, and I had some sort of built in GPS anyways, so I couldn't really get lost.

After a while, I turned right again, estimating it to be around the right spot for the square path I was running. I stopped dead though, as a few feet in front of me stood a black bear, along with a cub, with their backs to me and oblivious to my approach.

I recognized her as Cookie, a cinnamon colored American Black Bear who I'd run into many times during my jogs. She was a good friend, I talked to her a lot; she was another one of those animals that helped me stand the prerequisite anti-social behavior that came with my job. I mean, face it – humans were naturally gregarious animals, even if complete introverts like me. And I wasn't even human; at least not completely. I hadn't seen my friend since just before hibernation last year, and didn't realize the real reason she was gaining weight so quickly. I guess I knew now.

Cookie whirled around to face me, in a protective stance over the cub, lips pulled back over her teeth. The cream colored cub cowered into her leg. Cookie visibly relaxed when she saw it was just me, but the cub still hid between her legs.

"Jeez, Bella, don't scare me like that!" She scolded. "I thought you were one of _them_…" Cookie trailed off, obviously shaken just by the thought of whoever _they_ were.

"Sorry." I said sarcastically. I paused for a little, before turning to Cookie thoughtfully. "Hey, who are _they_?"

She looked at me incredulously. "You seriously don't know who _they_ are?"

"Am I supposed to?"

"What do you think? I'm surprised the other animals haven't come and complained to you."

"Care to share?" I asked. I wanted to know more about this problem, because it obviously affected the entire animal population in the surrounding areas.

"Its bad luck to say it out loud." Cookie shook her head, before nudging the cub forward with her nose. "Oh, and Bella, this is my first cub," The ball of fluff dug his nails into the ground, obviously scared. "Bubba."

The cub didn't make a move, and Cookie nipped him on the neck lightly.

I shook my head. "It's ok, don't worry about it. I can wait till he's older." I didn't mind; besides, the cub was still only about three to four months old, maybe younger.

"No, no, you'll meet Bubba now. You're his godmother – if anything ever happens to me, I want you to take care of him." Cookie was obviously was referring to getting hurt by _them_.

I gave the bear a skeptical look. "Bears have godmothers?" She simple nodded, and I let out a short laugh.

"Shut up! It's not funny; everyone's doing it now anyways."

"Why is everyone telling me to shut up today?" I muttered.

Cookie snorted. "Maybe because you're having trouble keeping your trap closed," she suggested. I glared at her. "Okay, okay, I'm sorry. Now, we're getting off topic. Bella, meet Bubba." She nudged Bubba forward with her paw, none too gently. He rolled forward, as he wasn't expecting the force. He stopped with an 'oomph' right between his mom and me. He picked his head up and looked from his mother to me and back again, looking completely bewildered.

I giggled softly and knelt to the grown, putting my hand out in front of me. He looked to his mother for approval, and she nodded in encouragement. Bubba picked himself up off the ground gingerly, and approached cautiously one step at a time. After a minute or so, he got in sniffing range, and stretched his nose out to snuffle at my hand. His soft wet nose brushed gently against my fingertips, and I giggled. Bubba looked up at me with wide, innocent eyes, and then spoke, "Nice to meet you Miss Bewwa!"

I laughed; Bubba was just too cute, lisp and all. "Just Bella, Bubs." I decided that'd be my nickname for him. He looked at me with gleeful eyes, obviously fond of it. I then looked up at Cookie. "You did good, girl." I complimented. But Cookie was frozen in place, and I had a feeling that bad thing that Nina had predicted was about to happen.

"Cookie?" I called. I didn't get a response from her.

"Mom?" Bubba asked, scared. Again, no reaction.

"Vampires!" Cookie exclaimed suddenly. The whites of her eyes were showing, conveying the terror that she felt. She looked me directly in the eye then, her eyes reducing to their normal size. She sighed, and then, "Bella, it was nice knowing you. Take care of Bubba for me. That's my dying wish. And don't avenge my death." She turned her gaze to Bubba. "I love you, forever and always. Remember that. Be strong now." Tears were welling up in my eyes, threatening to spill over. She was too young to die!

"But momma…" The cub cried, taking a step toward her.

"No buts!" She barked. Bubba jumped. She looked at me again. "Run! _NOW!" _With that, she turned on us, running in the opposite direction of where we stood. I quickly picked up the frozen ball of fluff that was Cookie's cub, taking one last look behind me. I shouldn't have.

I could see Cookie, laying limp and lifeless in the hands of a bulky, weightlifter like vampire, who was crouched over her body with his teeth sunk into her neck. I gasped, clutching Bubba tightly and hiding his head in my chest before he could see anything. The vampire looked up; his coal black eyes made a stark contrast to his pale skin. He seemed to be fighting the instinct to come and attack me. I grimaced and whipped around, sprinting full speed in the direction that my internal GPS told me to go; I was pretty damn fast when I was scared, I noticed.

Of course, since I have no real co-ordination, I tripped on the last step up to the patio. I twisted my body so that Bubba would land on top of me, and collided with the hard wood floor. It hurt, but I'd live. I quickly got up, moving Bella so I was holding him with one arm, and used the other to pull my key out of my sweats' back pocket, unlocking the door and barging through the door, closing it and stuffing the key into the keyhole, twisting it so that the door was locked. Not that it would be much help against a vampire, or so I've been told.

I leaned my back against the door, closing my eyes and taking deep breaths. _Breathe_ _in, breathe out,_ I chanted over and over in my head.

"That bad?" Nina questioned as I heard her approach me. I opened my eyes to see her looking at me inquisitively, her head tilted up a little to meet my gaze.

"You have no idea." I told her.

"Don't say I never told ya so!"

**Ok, you should know what to do now…I hope… Cookies for anyone who does! Well, virtual ones…and **_**not**_** the kind websites put on your computer… Yah, L8er! I'm writing the next chapter right now! HG23**


	3. Jakeypoo

**This is where the OOCness comes in. She has a real temper, is really passionate about animals, and I know in this chapter Bella sounds a bit self-centered, but really she's just over confident in herself, and REALLY hates these vampires for eating her friends. –Wow, that sounds weird…- And I know I should update more often, but I have no life and too much homework, so bear with me. Also, why do I have all these faves and stuff and barely any reviews? Does anyone have a hypothesis behind that? Oh, and I can't really remeber what the Uley's house looks like, so bear with me; and Jacob is really stereotypical here, but it works for my purposes. Okay, I'm done now, read away!**

**Endangered: Chapter 2**

I had several wild animals approach me today, wanting to know what I could do about these vampires. So, now that all the animals at the center were fed, I was heading down to La Push to talk to the werewolves. I had a black messenger bag on my shoulder, with some milk powder and stuff for Bubba, as well as the bear himself. His cream-colored headpoked out of the side, and it looked really cute. He seemed to be taking his mother's death very well, even though he was in a state of shock for a few hours after the incident.

I closed and locked the door behind me. "Bye Nina!" I called as I climbed down the steps. I tripped over the last step, but caught myself before I fell completely.

"Are you ok, Bewwa?" Bubba asked, poking his head out of the side of the bag to look up at me worriedly.

"I'm fine, just a complete klutz." I informed him.

"What's a kwutz?" He asked, tilting his head to the right slightly, his eyes filled with curiosity. I smiled at him.

"Someone like me, who trips, falls, or gets hurt really easy."

"Oh." I patted his head affectionately, and he disappeared back into the bag.

The rest of the time we walked in comfortable silence, me stopping every now and then to check on Bubs. Eventually, we emerged from the woods. I stopped at the edge, looking at a large, white house with a blue roof and shutters. Colorful potted plants lined all the outer windowsills. It had a road leading up to it, and there were several cars parked out front. I could smell the werewolves from where I stood.

I sighed dramatically, and Bubs pushed his head through the side of the bag again, looking at me. "Are you ok Bewwa?"

I rested my palm on his head lightly, using my fingers to scratch behind his ears. He closed his eyes and threw his head back a little. I tried to smile reassuringly, before saying, "I think."

I took a deep breath, trying not to be bothered by the loud racket I heard coming from inside the house. I pushed Bubba's head back into the bag gently, and then started walking up the driveway. When I got to the porch, I knocked on the door. I heard the kitchen go silent, and then someone stood up, their chair scrapping the floor, saying, "I'll get it."

I groaned. I knew that voice – it belonged to the one and only Jacob Black; aka the world's most irritating, flirtatious, egoistical jerk. He couldn't get it through his thick skull that _I was not interested_ or rather, _I can't date __**and **__I was not interested._ He was really tall, with russet skin and dark hair and eyes, just like all the other werewolves. I couldn't stand him.

Jacob opened the door, breaking into a grin when he saw it was me. "Well hi there! What're you here for? Maybe to take me up on that offer for a date?" He winked.

I grimaced unconsciously, stiffening slightly. Bubba squirmed in my bag, sticking his head out of the hole to look at me. "Is he bothering you, Bewwa?" He asked innocently. I could feel his claws extending and retracting through my bag.

I shook my head at him, patting his head. He gave me a skeptical look I didn't know such a young animal was capable of, before stuffing his head back inside of the bag obediently.

I looked up at Jacob, to see him staring at me.

"You're really cute with him." He commented.

I gave him a warning look. "Enough crap from you. Are you gonna let me in so I can talk to the pack or not?"

He got an evil glint in his eye, and I stiffened slightly again. Bubba's weight shifted in my bag. "Sure, sure. After you agree to go on a date with me."

Just as I was about to slap him, Sam, the pack's alpha emerged from the kitchen, along with Quil and Embry. "Jacob, stop harassing the poor girl!" Quil scolded lightly, smiling.

"Yes, Jacob, stop harassing me, and get out of the freaking doorway!" I hissed.

"Sure, sure," He made no move to shift away from the doorway however.

"Just do it!" I snapped. At this point, I had my arms held up, palms out. I shoved them against his chest forcefully, and he stumbled back, startled. My hands dropped to me sides again and I smirked as I passed him and walked into the kitchen, putting my bag on the table before settling into a chair behind it. I opened the bag and pulled Bubba onto my lap, before looking up to see the whole pack, as well as Emily, eyeing me carefully.

I smiled at them, glaring at Jacob after I was done. I then took out a bottle of formula I had made earlier, stuffing the nipple into Bubba's mouth and squeezing the bottle to get him suckling. I smiled, patting his head with my free hand. I looked up to see everyone scattered around the kitchen, watching with different expressions. I rolled my eyes, just as Paul spoke up, "Does this look like some sort of nursery to you?"

I nodded, and Bubba stopped drinking the formula to growl softly. Then we both looked at them with wide eyes, before I turned my gaze to Sam, and Bubs started drinking again. "Sam, there are vampires near the center, and they're disrupting the wildlife, feeding off them no less. I want you to get rid of them. I mean, that's your job, right?"

Sam sighed, shaking his head. "Right to the point, as always…" He mumbled, lifting his head to look me in the eye. "I'm sorry Bella, I'm afraid there's nothing we can do about the Cullens. Our forefathers made a treaty with them a long time ago, and we can't kill them."

"No matter how much we want to." Leah, the only female werewolf, muttered.

"Leah!" Sam reprimanded. She ignored him, inspecting her nails instead.

"So," I paused to take the empty bottle away from Bubba, "what can you tell me, about this treaty, these vampires?"

"Well, they're 'vegetarian' vampires," Sam paused, as several snorts exuded around the room, "which means they only feed off animals. They have golden eyes, different to the crimson ones of those who drink human blood."

"That doesn't explain why you can't kill them." I prodded, unsatisfied and confused with where this was going. I pet Bubs unconsciously as I waited.

"Well, we are here solely for the purpose of protecting humans, there's really nothing we can do unless they break the treaty." I glared at him. Why were the freaking humans so damn important?

"And to break the treaty they must…?" I waved my hand in a motion that signaled for him to continue.

"They must either cross the treaty line, which is exactly half way between Forks and La Push, or they must bite a human; neither of which they have done. Therefore it's in not in our or their best interest to fight."

"So basically you're saying you can't do anything?" Sam nodded. I abruptly stood up, scooping Bubba up in my arms and stuffing him in the bag. "Useless werewolves," I garbled. "If they can't do anything about those damn vampires, then I will!" My sentence started softly and ended with me almost yelling. Everyone watched in horror as I started for the door hurriedly.

Naturally, I tripped, and Quil, as he was closest to me, caught me and held me in place.

"You'll do nothing of the sort!" Sam scolded. I struggled slightly, but let it go as I didn't want Bubba to get hurt. I hung my head for a second, thinking. Why should I listen to a bunch of useless werewolves? And _I _for one did not have some sort of bogus treaty to keep to. And I could probably take them. Vampires only live in groups of two to three, as far as my knowledge extended. That would be easy enough. They may have been infinitely strong and whatnot, but I was almost as powerful. Pair that with my intellectual level, and I could probably beat them with my eyes closed.

"And just why not? I have every reason to go get rid of them! There is nothing stopping me; I'm not bound by some stupid treaty!" I yelled, starting to struggle again. Embry, who was next to Quil, laid a hand on my shoulder in an attempt to calm me down a little. It didn't help, so he retracted it.

"Because!" Sam snapped. "There are seven vampires, all extremely strong and fast, who never tire, and three with powers." Seven? That's unusual. That would be a bit challenging, but I would do it none the less. I'd get rid of them, one way or another. My mind was set.

"Besides," Jacob chimed in, "We don't need you getting killed over some stupid animals." Jake just crossed the line with that single statement. He would _pay_. All thoughts of kicking vampire butt vanished, and my mind now centered on different ways I could put Jacob through, a slow, excruciatingly painful death.

"You did not just say that!" I seethed. I broke away from Quil's hold with a simple shove, taking care to keep the bag with Bubba in it on my shoulder.

"Yeah, I think I did. What are you gonna do about it?" Wrong answer, buddy. I stomped across the kitchen until I was directly in front of Jacob. I looked up at him defiantly.

"This." I stated simply, pulling my clenched fist back to gather power, launching it so that it landed right above his smirk, on his nose. I heard a satisfying snap as I drew back my fist, knowing very well that is was his nose and not one of my fingers that just broke. I smiled up at him. "You should know better, Jakey-poo." I said, before turning to leave.

"Bella! Hold on!" Sam grabbed my arm and tried to wrench me to a stop. I gave in quickly, as his grasp was bruising my arm, and spun around to look at him.

"Yes, almighty werewolf pack alpha who can't do shit?" I taunted, rolling my eyes and smiling for dramatic effect.

"Where are you going right now?"

"To find these 'Cullens'," - I used my fingers like quotation marks here – "and exterminate them, once and for all." I said it like this was an everyday thing to do.

Sam sighed in exasperation. "What can I do to keep you from attacking them?"

"You doing it yourselves."

"Other than that." He probed.

I shrugged. "Don't know, don't care. Now, if you'll please, I have a coven of vampires to kill."

"Bella!" Sam reprimanded sharply. Who was he to tell me what to do?

"I don't see why you're trying to stop her, oh holy alpha. We don't like the leeches any more than she does. Just let her do it." Leah spoke up. I shot her a grateful look and mouthed 'thank you' to her. She smiled slightly, nodding.

Sam looked over his shoulder and shot Leah and meaningful look. She rolled her eyes and stood up, coming to my side. "I'll go with her, in fact." Everyone looked surprised except for me. I smiled up at her and she smiled back, before grabbing my wrist. "Come on Bella, we've got some leech butt to kick." She tugged on my arm lightly, and we both started for the door again.

"Stop!" Sam yelled. We both turned to look at him expectantly, eyebrows raised. "This is in nobody's best interest. If it'll get you two to stop going out there and getting yourselves killed or severely injured, I'll go and talk to Carlisle when the opportunity arises. Ok?" I eyed him suspiciously, but nodded reluctantly, taking a look at my watch.

"Woah! I gotta go. My fave show starts in an hour. Bye!" I called, pausing to give Leah a brief smile. She returned the favor.

"I'll make sure he actually does it, and then I'll call, ok?" I nodded and we exchanged numbers whilst walking out into the hall.

"Have fun with the Spanish Inquisition back in the kitchen!" I teased. She glared jokingly at me.

"What a shame I can't make you come with me."

"Well, best of luck. I've gotta scram."

"Yeah, bye Bella!" I smiled and waved, walking out the door and closing it behind me. I sighed as I walked into the forest again. That hadn't gone the way I thought it would. At least Leah was nice.

**Hah, bet you didn't expect that one, did ya? Well, review now! G2G! xx HG23**


	4. Hugs and Vampires

**Whoo!! You people are da bomb! Now I know that if I ever need an ego boost, I just need to post/read my reviews. Thans guys. And I know this wasn't _that_ fast, but oh well. Oh, and since they let middle schoolers go to prom here, I'm going! It's on Friday! Whoo!! Lolz, so I probably won't be posting that fast. :D Now read away, I've nothing leftto say! -ooh! it rhymes...-**

**Endangered: Chapter 3**

I sighed. It was finally time for Bubba to go out on his own, and I was anything but prepared to release him. I was sort of like a mother paranoid about her only child going out into the real world. Only difference was Bubba was a bear, and he was my best friend more than anything.

"So you remember everything, right? Stay on the La Push side of the treaty line, don't do anything stupid, stay away from any supernatural creatures, with the exception of me and Leah - "

Bubba groaned, agitated. "Yes, yes! I know! Avoid Jacob, meet a nice girl bear, come by as soon as possible! I'm not two Bella!"

"Yeah, you are…literally speaking…" He glared at me. "Okay! Okay! It's just gonna be so different without you here to do something stupid or silly. You know Hunter's already been released, and Nina's gotten really quiet and anti-social lately." I gave him a sad look.

"I don't see why you won't just let me stay at the center. It'd save you all this depression and - "

"Bubs," I interrupted, "I promised your mom I'd look after you, not force you to live in a protected hole all your life."

"But I like living like that!" Bubba protested.

"Only you." I muttered. "But that's beside the point. Now, you already know everything. So…" I trailed off awkwardly.

Bubba pulled his lips back over his teeth lazily, in his favorite bear grin. He walked up to me, getting on his hind legs so the he stood upright, wrapping his fore arms around my neck. I giggled softly, wrapping my own arms around his girth.

"I'm gonna miss you." I whispered, tears in my eyes.

"Me too Bells." He responded softly.

We eventually broke the hug, and I used my hand to scratch him behind his left ear. He rolled his head back slightly, closing his eyes. After a few seconds, I pulled my hand away.

"Okay then. Now, we'll just test the tracking device one more time…" I murmured. I ran my wrist across his shoulder, nodding in approval when on of the blue lights on the thick silver band lit up, indicating it had picked up the signal from the chip in Bubba's shoulder.

I pet him one more time, sighing. Bubba swatted my hand away. "If you keep this up, I'm following you back home, ya know," he told me.

I grunted in response, before forcing my features into a tight smile, that didn't quite reach my eyes. "Be safe." I said softly as I bent down and kissed him on his head.

"Will do, _mom._"

"Shut up!"

"Well, I'm just addressing you according to your behavior."

"Now _you_ sound like the mom." I teased.

Bubba glared playfully at me. "Now _you _can shut up."

I rolled my eyes defiantly. "Make me."

"I will." He gave me a sly look, and I quickly held my hands up in defeat.

"Okay, okay, I surrender!"

"Much better." Bubba said.

"Alright then…I'll be going now…" I trailed off into another awkward silence.

"Yeah…"

"That didn't help."

"I know that." We both giggled like we always had.

"Bye!" I said as gave him one last smile, again relatively tight. He responded with a similar, bear-ified version. We shook our heads simultaneously, before I quickly turned on my heal and ran, knowing that if I looked back at my furry best friend, I would cave and take him back with me.

The scenery was flying by me faster than I ever remembered, and I eventually slowed down, only then realizing that in my rush to get away from where I had left Bubba, I had ran right past the center and into the 'danger zone', as I liked to call it. I was in vampire hunting territory, and I knew it.

I turned around quickly, so that I could head back in the direction of the center. And just my luck, not 200 feet off, stood a vampire.

But not just _any_ vampire. No. This one was gorgeous, and that's saying something when vampires are, in essence, a very good-looking species. He had bronze colored hair in the most untamable mop on his head, and when I looked him in the eye, I realized I really shouldn't have. His eyes were the most mesmerizing ocher color, and even with wild look they held, they still managed to catch me off guard.

I held my breath, slightly dazzled, for lack of a better word, as he seemed to fight with himself internally. Probably between the instinct to hunt me, and the guilty conscience that told him not to.

Eventually, when I was about to pass out due to lack of oxygen, he crouched down more exaggeratedly, into an almost catlike position. I drew a sharp intake of breath as he started to slink toward me in the most cat like of manners. He reminded me very much of a puma.

I stood there, frozen in place, staring him straight in the eye as he approached me. Then, suddenly, when he was about 100 feet away, I snapped out of my hypnotized state, and my brain started functioning again. I kept my eyes on him as the wheels in my head started turning.

If his hunting tactics really did resemble that of a cougar's so much, it must mean he was a hunter who got as close to his preyas possible, before attacking and delivering the lethal bite. So running wouldn't be a good idea; but neither would it be smart to just stand there as he got ever closer to me, would it? To just stand there would be purely stupid. It would just be too easy for him.

I continued staring into his golden eyes, analyzing his every move. As he continued toward me, now within 50 feet from where I stood, I thought about how random it seemed to compare a vampire, an indestructible creature, built for the kill, to what seemed like an animal that was that much lower in the food chain.

It was kind of funny to think about, really. That such a feared thing could be compared to something so seemingly _harmless_ in contrast. They were, in fact, very similar in nature, it appeared. At least this individual was.

I shook my head; this would be something to ponder on a slow day at the center, not when said vampire was less than 25 feet away from me. I could just smell him from here, a soft, musky, forest smell; it smelled wonderful. I noticed his eyes had grown considerably darker, and were now almost black – could it be a way of saying 'I'm hungry'? I continued to decipher his motives; he was very sure of his own speed, but he wasn't really sure about me. So he wanted to get as close as possible before pouncing.

Now, he was about 20 feet away, and I was now extremely sure I had no option left, except to just stand there and face the music. Unless… I shook my head, it was extremely unlikely that I could teleport if I actually wanted to. But I could try; really though, what was the chance there was a not-so-natural disaster happening on the north American continent at exactly this split second? Almost none. I might as well try to force myself to teleport, nothing would be lost.

In reality, it was probably my only chance of getting out of this alive. A look of sheer concentration crossed my face as I willed myself to teleport, all the while watching the beautiful vampire, following him with my eyes.

Suddenly, I saw the vampire's eyes go wide, and I felt the sensation of floating that came with teleporting. I saw the swirl of colors as the landscape around me liquefied, feeling the wind that whipped my hair around my face as I spun around at a somewhat alarming pace. I smiled to myself as everything faded to black. I loved teleporting.

I quickly steadied myself as I felt my feet touch hard ground, and was rather surprised when my surroundings turned out to be that of the center. I smiled slightly to myself, before trudging inside and collapsing on the couch.

"Long day?" Nina asked from where she was now curled up on the couch next to me.

"Yup. On my way home, I ran into a vampire." She looked at me expectantly, waiting for me to elaborate. "He was hunting, but I somehow managed to teleport myself home. He was a really gorgeous one, and he's one of the 'vegetarians'. He has the golden eyes. But jeez, if I ever run into a vampire again, it'll be too soon."

"Are you crushing on a _vampire?_" Nina asked incredulously. Did I really sound like I was crushing on the vampire? I replayed what I'd said in my head, and yes it did sound like I was. It was fairly obvious, the way I called him gorgeous then quickly changed the subject. Not that I was trying to hide that I was crushing on him, because I wasn't.

"No, of course not! I told you, vampires are all inhumanly beautiful." I defended.

"Mhm. Sure." She said, unbelieving. I gave Nina an indignant look. "Other than going all goo-goo eyes with this 'gorgeous vampire', what else happened?"

"Actually it was really interesting to study him. I did mental field observations, and it was cool to see how similar he was to a cougar. The way they hunted; it was kind of cool to make the comparison…" I droned on about my observations for a while, until I had it out of my system. I would probably write it up later.

"So, you left Bubba on the La Push side of the treaty line, right?" Nina asked curiously. She was Bubba's mother figure as well; I just did all the work was the difference.

I nodded. "Yup, told him to stay on that side too. In fact, it would be good to see how he's doing. How about we go check what the tracking device says?"

"Sure," Nina said in affirmation as we both got off the couch and walked over to the office corner. I quickly turned the laptop on and opened the special computer program that the boss had given me to use specifically for these sorts of projects.

As I lifted up my wrist to take the tracking bracelet, I froze. My wrist was bare, no sign of the important piece of metal anywhere. I groaned in annoyance.

"You have got to be kidding me," I muttered as I stood up. "Nina, I've gotta go look for it. It might take a while; it's Forks, so it's rained since I got back and probably washed away most of the scent. It'll be harder to track my route…"

"Take your time, but be back before nightfall." Nina said with authority.

"But it's already 5.30!" I whined. I seriously don't know why I even bothered listening to Nina; I was an adult, I didn't need curfew.

"That gives you around two hours. If you don't find it by 7.30, you're to come home, understand?" I nodded meekly. "Good. You should get going now."

It was 7.25, and I had been searching the forest only to find nothing. I was getting really frustrated; I needed to find the bracelet! I couldn't just go out and get a new one, especially since each bracelet only communicated with one chip. So, I had to find this bracelet, or the chip implanted in Bubba's shoulder wouldn't be doing either of us any good.

I groaned upon hearing a faint, reprimanding voice. "Bella!" it called. Nina.

Great, looks like this was a lost cause.

**Yous know what to do! Press that button below here somewhere! And get virtual cookies! Quick, I only have a gazillion! xP **


	5. My Bracelet!

**Okay, so it wasn't that fast an update, but I don't have a life. My life revolves around homework, which teaches me absolutely nothing. So forgive me – I'm trying. Also, I GET TO GO HORSE RIDING!! WHOOT!! … sorry, that was a cause for celebration. And I have the week off too. But me going riding is also a good thing for you readers, cus I get a lot of writing inspiration, if you will, while I'm down there. Oh, and I'm training for a dressage compy for next month. oh, and celebration time! They found 4 NEW, UNCOUNTED YOUNG JAVAN RHINOS!! WHOOT! GO RHINOS!! I mean, the grand total is only like, 40. No joke, and I didn't miss a zero. Oh, and I'd like to thank everyone who reads and reviews and says my crappy writing is worth their time. So… -takes a deep breath- THANK YOU!!! Now, if you survived this endless, celebratory-ish rant, you can actually read the story. **

**Endangered: Chapter 4**

It was already morning, and I was still fretting about my bracelet. I couldn't sit still for the life of me. It was barely eight o'clock and I had cleaned the entire center twice, had fed all the animals and attended to the sick ones. Right now I sat, facing the computer and planning to do a write up on my observations of the vampire yesterday.

As I sat at the desk, typing away, I noticed the animals getting increasingly uncomfortable. The single doe in one of the enclosures outside was pacing and muttering profanities under her breath. The small hedgehog that lay in one of the pens inside the veterinary was making high pitched squeaking noises, and Nina was nowhere in sight. The osprey that was inside the aviary was flying from perch to perch, and I was starting to get a headache.

"What is their problem?" I muttered as I pushed back from the table. I quickly minimized the window, a habit I have never grown out of for some reason, and walked over to the medicine cabinet. I took out an aspirin before proceeding to the kitchen and getting a glass of water and quickly gulped down the pill. I then got out a snack and went to sit on the couch, picking up my phone in the process.

I quickly dialed Leah's number, for lack of anything better to do, and hoped she'd pick up so I could whine about my bracelet being lost and the animals going bonkers.

The phone rang a few times, before I heard her voice on the other end, "hello?"

"Hey Leah!"

"Oh, Bella, hi! Let me just get away from the nincompoops in the kitchen so I can actually hear you."

I laughed a little, "ok." I heard shuffling and slamming doors, and the sound of Leah lying down on her bed. "Better?" I asked.

"Much. Now, what do you wanna complain about?" Jeez, she knew me too well.

"Well, Bubba is now in the wild, and guess what?"

"You lost the tracking bracelet?"

"Are you a mind reader?"

She laughed, "not the last time I checked. It just seems like such a Bella thing to do."

"You forgot the tripping and the encounters with dangerous mythical creatures." I reminded her.

"Oh ya? What '_dangerous mythical creature'_ did you run into now?"

"Another vampire," I groaned, "he was hunting."

Leah gasped, "why didn't you call me sooner?"

"There would have been nothing you could do about it. And I was in their territory – by mistake – anyways."

She scoffed on the other end of the line, "I would have gone down there and kicked his butt anyway. Are you alright?"

"I'm fine, I managed to actually force myself to teleport."

I heard her clapping enthusiastically on the other end, meaning I was on speaker phone; not that I minded. Instead, I just took my phone off my ear, placing in on the couch and pressing the speaker button. "Can you teleport here now, so we don't have to talk over the phone or move?"

"Er…I don't think so. It wouldn't be a good idea anyways."

"Humph! I didn't realize your best bud was such low priority."

"Leah!" I groaned. "Not this again…"

"Don't 'Leah not this again' me! You have insulted me for the last time Isabella Swan." She said indignantly. "You _will_ come over. Now."

After about two seconds of silence, we both burst into laughter. "I would…" My sentence was interrupted by a knock on the door. "But apparently, someone is paying me a visit." I said, confused.

"Who visits the oh-so-horrible social reject Bella?" Leah asked. I could hear the smile in her voice; I simply shook my head, smiling.

"There's that mean streak you're known for, coming out right there…" I muttered. It was rather weird actually, I was Leah's only true friend. She had gone through this horrible break up with the pack leader, Sam, when he imprinted on her cousin, and ever since, she'd changed. She was very closed off to people, with a snappy attitude, so it was very hard for her to get along with most people. But we got very close after the 'oh holy alpha' incident.

I was brought out of my thinking by another knock on the door, more rapid this time. I noticed the doe was now wide eyed, pushing herself up against the fence. I wondered why.

"Uh-huh, yeah. You better go answer the door before whoever it is breaks it down. Bye! Oh, and call me after the mysterious stranger is gone, k?"

"K," I said. "Later!" I quickly pressed the end call button, before jumping off the couch and running to open the door. I tripped a little as I got closer, but caught myself on the door handle.

As I opened the door, I stumbled back in shock at who stood before me. It was the vampire from yesterday – golden eyes, bronze hair, and he wore the most dazzling, lop-sided smile. I caught my breath, slightly dazed, before my gaze traveled to see what the shiny thing he was dangling in my face was.

To my great relief – and delight – hanging off his right index finger, was my bracelet.

"You dropped this," he commented dryly.

Without a second thought, I ran up to him and threw my arms around his neck , to both of our surprises. He hesitantly put his arms around my waist. I breathed in, and his musky, beautiful smell greeted my nose; I loved the way his ice cold skin felt against mine. I then let him go before my thoughts could get any farther, blushing fire truck red.

"Sorry," I mumbled, embarrassed.

"No, it's perfectly alright." He said, smiling. He then held his hand out toward me. "I don't believe I've introduced myself. I'm Edward Cullen." The name suited him, as old as it was. It was very…him. I instantly liked it.

I reached my hand out to shake his, "Bella, Bella Swan." I said, smiling. To my surprise, instead of shaking my hand, he brought mine to his cold, hard lips. I giggled slightly, in a very girly fashion, but stopped quickly. What was getting into me?

"It's a pleasure to meet you," Edward murmured; he didn't let go of my hand just yet, and I realized he was strapping my bracelet onto my wrist.

"You too," I declared. We stood in awkward silence for a moment, as he finished strapping the bracelet back onto my wrist. I studied the floor and trying to figure out what the heck he was here for, other than return my bracelet. To politely introduce himself, and then kill me? That was rather far fetched, even for me.

I turned when I heard Nina approaching. I made eye contact with her, and she simply gave me an incredulous look as she gestured her head at Edward, before disappearing.

I turned back to Edward, who was shuffling and looking uncomfortable, and I noticed his eyes had darkened a couple shades. That wasn't good; from what I knew; he wanted a bite out of my bobcat. I inconspicuously maneuvered myself so that I was across the doorway.

Edward cleared his throat awkwardly. "Erm…I just wanted to give this back to you and apologize…" He mumbled, looking at the floor. He looked like a little school boy, and it was cute, to say the least. If he was human, he probably would have been blushing.

"For what?" I asked curiously, tilting my head to the side. As I did this, my right hand traveled behind my back, and when I heard Nina's footsteps, gave her the 'I can handle it' hand signal I had developed. I heard the air move slightly as she nodded before her footsteps faded away. My hand returned to my side, and I met Edward's eyes to see him looking at me expectantly.

"Oh, I'm sorry, I didn't catch that," I apologized. "Maybe we can go for a walk while we talk?" I added, wanting to usher him away from the center.

"If that's what you'd like." He responded, giving me a tight smile. I wondered why he wasn't as relaxed as he was before, but let it go, nodding and quickly spinning around to close the door. As I spun back, one foot caught the other, in true Bella fashion – Leah's words, not mine.

I closed my eyes and grimaced, waiting for the impact of the floor. It never came, and I opened my eyes to realize I was standing upright, with Edward's cold arm securely around my waist. I met his ocher eyes then, and we just stared at each other for a moment, before he let me go abruptly and I blushed a deep red.

"Thanks," I mumbled shyly. I seemed to be doing that a lot lately.

He nodded. "Anytime." His eyes were slightly darker than they were a moment ago.

I let it drop though, and started to walk down the patio steps, taking care not to trip over my two left feet again. We walked into the forest side by side, his pace slowing slightly to match my own.

"So, what were you saying earlier?" I asked casually.

"Well, I wanted to apologize to look like I was going to eat you yesterday when we ran into each other in the forest."

"Look like?" I scoffed almost silently.

Edward's head snapped in my direction, and I realized he had extremely good hearing too. Oops.

"Excuse me?"

"Nothing."

Edward didn't seem to believe me, but didn't bother pushing it any further. "Can we be friends?" He blurted out suddenly, coming to a halt.

I looked at him, almost incredulous. How could that possibly work? Not that I'm complaining or anything, he is really gorgeous…still. I looked up at him, and almost melted when I met the smoldering, hopeful ocher eyes. The look on his face was so hopeful, I almost couldn't turn him down, even with I wanted to.

Ah, what the heck. It can't hurt, can it? "Sure." I smiled.

His eyes lit up with happiness, although I had no idea what about. Why would he want to be friends with me anyhow?

Oh well, looks like my newest friend is a vampire.

**Review!! We have cookies!! :D **


	6. Getting to Know Edward

**I swear, I am the only person in the world who can hurt herself while she's sleeping. I sprained my wrist while I was asleep last night. Way to go me, right? Anyhow, I know you're all gonna kill me for not updating in so long, but life has been hell, and I just couldn't get this chapter sounding right. I'm on end-of-term break now, so I have these two weeks to write up a couple chappies for this and Mistakes. Oh, and I'm happy to say that there **_**WILL **_**be a sequel to Ariel's Summer coming out sometime soon. And I changed the summary, in case you haven't noticed. You'll notice this Edward is a lot less…pessimistic, I guess, so he's OOC now too. It just didn't fit to have Edward all brooding and emo in this story. **

**Endangered: Chapter 5**

"Excuse me, what did you just say?"

I looked to the ground and blushed a little – I noticed his eyes darkened a fraction here – realizing I had said that out loud. Oh well, so much for keeping him in the dark.

"Nothing, only that my newest friend is a vampire."

_Wow, I attract the weirdest creatures,_ I though to myself_. Bears and moose were too normal. I just had to go find myself some strange supernatural hottie to hang out with. Way to go Bella. _

Wait. Hottie?

I swiftly lifted my palm to my forehead, checking for a fever. Never in my thirty-something years had I come even _remotely_ close to using that kind of terminology.

Yeah, now I'm the girl who uses the word 'terminology' in her head. Great.

"Bella?" Edward's cold hand reached up to brush my shoulder, shocking me out of my thought. I didn't miss the electricity that I felt, but I just brushed it off as it being a little static. I suspected he felt the spark too, judging from the surprise in his beautiful topaz eyes.

I shook my head, clearing my thoughts before I went off on some inner monologue about those 'beautiful topaz eyes'. God only knows I'd either sound like a love struck teenager or some wacky scientist.

"Yes, Edward?" I noticed his eyes had become a little dull, sad even. I smiled softly, trying to decipher his sudden change of mood. He turned so that I couldn't see his face clearly, shrouding his eyes in a tuft of bronze hair.

"What gave me away?" He asked after a short pause, his head shooting up to meet my gaze all of a sudden. I jumped at the sudden movement, before calming down enough to rest a reassuring hand on his arm. I felt the electricity again, but didn't remove my hand this time.

I looked up at him, confused, "What do you mean?"

"You know exactly what I mean." He snapped, shrugging my hand off. His eyes turned dark but this time it seemed out of anger.

I glared at Edward, annoyed. I briefly wondered if it was possible for vampires to be bipolar, before shaking my head slightly from side to side, "no, I don't. Why don't you just tell me and make both our lives that much easier?"

By now, we had stopped walking and stood front to front about two feet apart.

I stared at him, daring him to tell me, while he simply shoved his hands in his pockets and refused to meet my irritated gaze.

"Well," he started finally. I noticed the change in his tone, how he was now looked calm, collected and in control. His eyes had almost returned to their usual gold. "How did you know I was a…_vampire_?" He said the word 'vampire' like it was some nasty incurable disease, surprising me. The way he said it made it obvious he didn't appreciate that existence.

I stammered, letting out a complete string of 'ums' and 'ahs' as I contemplated how to approach answering this question. I didn't really want to tell him what I was; not yet anyways. I hadn't known him long enough.

"Er…women's intuition?" It came out more like a question, and I had a feeling even the most gullible of people wouldn't believe that.

Edward just nodded, his expression stoic but his eyes telling me he didn't buy my answer – hell, I didn't – but he didn't push the subject. I thanked him vigorously in my head.

We turned and continued walking side by side. The silence wasn't awkward, but it wasn't comfortable either. It was just…nothing.

All of sudden I got an idea and a mischievous grin broke out across my face. Edward gave me a puzzled look and I simply smiled wider before practically yelling, "20 questions!"

"Is that your brilliant idea?"

I nodded energetically, still grinning like the Cheshire cat.

Edward nodded his head in approval, pursing his lips, "I like it."

"You know how to play 20 questions, right?" I asked him.

He gave me an incredulous look, "Who _doesn't_ know how to play 20 questions?"

"Um… the starving kids stuck in Somalia?"

Edward shrugged, "I didn't think of that."

I bit my lip before I could make some snappy remark about him hurting his head, instead deciding to start the interrogation. "Favorite color?"

"Brown; you?"

"It changes every day. Um, favorite book?"

"None. I'm not the most avid reader." This surprised me; what did he do with all his free time? "What's your full name?"

We continued like this as we walked strolled through forest, and I'm sure we asked way more than 20 questions. For me, it was refreshing to talk in English, to a biped. It was almost strange.

I also learnt a lot about Edward during our game. His full name is Edward Anthony Masen Cullen, and he is a member of a coven of seven. He was born in Chicago, and he loved music. He listened to everything but rap and country, although he wasn't too fond of pop. He also played the piano, and when I asked if he composed music, he just looked embarrassed and avoided the question. I didn't know what to make of that. I also learnt a lot about the inconsequential little details in his life, like

We walked on in silence, and I found my self looking over at Edward ever now and then, almost as if to confirm he was real. I noticed that Edward was doing something of a similar manner as well.

As I glanced at him again, I started to take more notice of his aesthetic appearance. He was easy on the eye, that was for sure. He looked perfect, even if I could only see his profile from the way we were positioned, side by side. Straight nose, square jaw. His lips were a soft pink, contrasting beautifully with his pale complexion.

Suddenly, Edward stopped short, and I drew my gaze away from him to see were stopped at the edge of a beautiful clearing that was rather large, a meadow in true definition. The grass was a beautiful green, covered with multicolored flowers of all sorts. In the background, on the opposite side of the meadow, stood a beautiful, renaissance type mansion, with a modern touch. On the side we were standing at, I could see into the house, as one entire wall was made out of glass. On the ground floor, in what was probably the living room, were four people in various positions. I could just make them out through the glare of the window. Between the house and myself was a medium sized river, about three and a half meters wide; the water inside was crystal clear, and you could see right to the bed of it. It was beautiful.

"Erm, Bella, I'm sorry, but I kind of led us to my house unconsciously while we were walking…" Edward began.

I cut him off before he started rambling. "I understand, don't worry. It's completely logical for an animal to approach it's living quarters unknowingly upon the chance they are either lost or traveling in no particular direction. It's a nervous reaction due to a chemical processed in the back right side of the brain. Mammals' psyche."

I blushed a deep crimson when I realized exactly what I had just said. I mean, really? I looked up to find Edward staring at me with the most puzzled, frustrated – not to mention cute – look.

"Was that English?" He question finally.

"Yes," I answered meekly.

"I didn't think you'd know all that," he commented. "How old are you?"

I was rather taken aback by this question. How old was I? And how in the world was I supposed to answer that question? I just went with my physical age, "Seventeen."

"Bella, you aren't seventeen seventeen. That's obvious enough to me. How long have you _been_ seventeen?"

I paused, contemplating my answer. I didn't even know, actually. So I opted with a vague response. "A while."

Edward snorted, "Accurate answer."

I nodded, "Of course."

"Would you like to come inside? I'm sure my family would love to meet you, Bella. A couple of my siblings are out, though."

I found it really sweet that he called them his family not because he had to, but because that's what they really were to him. I could see it in his eyes and the tone he used – a loving, soft one. I really wouldn't know much about familiar relationships, though, bearing in mind my past.

"Sure, as long as they don't bite" I joked.

"I'm sure they won't," he responded in a similar tone. I looked up into his mirthful ocher eyes.

And that's when something struck me – I forgot to ask about what he ate! _Way to go, Bella,_ I thought to myself. _Realize you know diddly about the hot vampire's diet minutes before walking into his house. _This time around, I ignored the fact that I called him hot and just focused on the more important aspect of the sentence.

Like how I'm probably the afternoon snack.

I voiced this thought to Edward.

Edward shook his head, almost like he was disappointed, muttering something that sounded like, "_Now she asks._" I ignored his comment, instead looking up at him expectantly.

He paused, supposedly thinking of how to word it right. "Bella, my family and I, we're different from other vampires. We live off animal blood rather than human blood."

My world stopped right then and there. I didn't really listen to Edward's rambling about how it gave them a clearer conscience. I knew this was too good to be true – of course he lived off _my_ animals. I bit back a groan. Fate really hated me, didn't it?

It's not that I didn't believe Edward and his family weren't good people. It would be presumptive of me to label them as cruel heartless things, and I was sure they were all great. But fate was really hitting below the belt with the whole 'we eat animals so we can feel good about ourselves' deal. I really shouldn't be surprised though. This was me, Bella Swan. I had the worst luck of anyone who ever existed.

"Bella, Bella?! You in there?" Edward was waving his hand in front of my face, looking worried.

I shook my head, pushing those thoughts to the back of my mind, ready to revisit when I had the time. "Hmm? Oh, sorry I zoned out on you, Edward!" I apologized quickly. Then, before I could change my mind and back out with some lame excuse, I took a step into the clearing and looking over my shoulder at Edward, who looked relieved for some reason. "Shall we?"

_What did I just get myself into?_

**BTW, don't believe that scientific thing that Bella said, I just made that up for story purposes. Notice Bella turned the 'a while' card on Eddie? xP **

**P.S. You Twilight peeps really aren't into cookies like PJO peeps are! Do you prefer blondies or something? :D**

**Don't forget to review... -hint, hint-**

**Xx**

**HG23**


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